#Knicks facing grueling stretch in schedule

Mired in a five-game losing streak, the Knicks can’t look to their schedule for any help.

Sunday’s matchup with the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics begins a stretch of four games in six days for the Knicks, including a pair of back-to-backs with a cross-country flight in between. That makes practice days few and far between, forcing the Knicks to largely figure out their issues on the fly.

“That’s the challenge of the season,” coach Tom Thibodeau said Saturday after practice in Boston. “Shortened training camp and we started with a schedule that’s a little unusual in terms of the travel part of it. So you have to manage it as best you can. So it’s a lot of film sessions, there’s a lot of individual film sessions, there’s walkthroughs in the ballroom. Then when we have the opportunity to get over to practice, we want to take advantage of that.

“We said at the beginning, the first step was to become a great practice team. I think we’re making some steps in that direction. I know when we practice well, we usually play well.”

The NBA’s compacted 72-game season, because of the pandemic, has made that practice time sacred, especially for Thibodeau in his first season at the helm of the Knicks.

“I think the way we’re practicing right now, when we do get the opportunity to practice, has been very positive,” Thibodeau said. “We’ve fallen short in this streak. But I do want us to focus on that improvement and getting better. As we get guys back, I think we’ll get a rhythm offensively in terms of making shots. And then we gotta get our defense going. When we do that, we’ll win.”

While the Knicks have played four games in the past week, the Celtics have played just one. After multiple reported COVID-19 cases and contact tracing left them shorthanded, leading to the postponement of three games, the Celtics returned to the court Friday against the Magic with a 124-97 win.

“I think it’s sort of the way our league is today,” Thibodeau said. “So you have to be ready for whoever they put on the floor. We know how good of a team Boston is and how deep they are. So that’ll pose a great challenge to us. We’ll have to be at our best.”

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Mitchell Robinson, who was hobbled Friday night with a contused right heel after a missed dunk, is probable for Sunday’s game, as is his backup, Nerlens Noel (sore lower back).

Alec Burks (sprained left ankle) is doubtful while Frank Ntilikina (sprained right knee) remains out.